Cameron Heyward doesn’t know when he will return to the Pittsburgh Steelers lineup because of his groin injury that required surgery.
He just knows it will happen at some point this season.
“I’m working my tail off to try to get back,” Heyward said Thursday. “We’ll see when we get there.”
The 34-year-old defensive tackle and Steelers longest-tenured player hasn’t played since the season opener against San Francisco, when he exited after 14 snaps. A few days later, he underwent surgery to repair his groin and was placed on injured reserve.
He is eligible to return from injured reserve after the Steelers’ game Sunday against Baltimore, but it could take another month of recovery time before he is cleared to practice.
The only other time Heyward was on the IR list, he missed the second half of the 2016 season.
Despite his injury, Heyward has remained a fixture at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, attending practices and meetings. He has accompanied the team on road trips to Las Vegas and Houston.
“I was in this situation one other time when I tore my pec and, just in that sense, I feel like I learned a lot about how I can be better,” Heyward said. “What the team needs. I’m lucky enough that I get to come back this season at some point. I’m trying to be an extension of players to coaches and coaches to players, seeing what I see, and I just want to get the best seat in the house.”
In Heyward’s absence, the Steelers have struggled to defend the run, giving up more than 148 yards per game.
“It’s frustrating enough not being able to play, but I think looking at it, it’s not like my guys aren’t trying,” he said. “There are little things we’ve got to clean up: hands, eyes, your key, how we step to a block. All these things can change the way we control the line of scrimmage. Hopefully, we’ve learned our lesson.
“The quickest way to get over this is to get a ‘W’ on Sunday because of the defensive line.”
